August 7
Final analytical data has been posted and is available through the data tab above. 

July 31
New analytical data has been posted and is available through the data tab above.

July 25 
The South Hill warehouse fire incident has transitioned from the emergency response phase to a cleanup phase. DEQ and EPA ceased in-person operations at the South Hill warehouse fire site. Both agencies will remain engaged (remotely) and involved in ongoing cleanup activities.

With the lifting of the recreation and fish consumption advisory, the incident management team has ceased collecting real-time water quality readings and surface water samples. Final water samples were collected on July 24. 

New analytical data has been posted and can be viewed in the data table available here. Pending analytical data will be posted when it is made available by the laboratories and once it has undergone appropriate quality control reviews.  

July 24 
The Virginia Department of Health (VDH) has lifted the recreational and fish consumption advisories for Mountain Creek, Dockery Creek, and the Roanoke River, to include Lake Gaston, to the North Carolina state line.

VDH considered several factors prior to lifting these advisories to protect public safety, to include field observations from environmental field staff, weather conditions (rainfall), and surface water sampling to monitor concentrations of contaminants. DEQ and the EPA have been testing these creeks since the event to assist in the evaluation of the potential risk of impacts of these chemicals on public health. Based on the above factors, recreational use and fish consumption activities may resume.

A DEQ team collected real-time water quality readings at 6 sites on Mountain, Dockery, and Miles Creeks, as well as the Roanoke River/Lake Gaston. Observations showed no foam, sheen, odor, or aquatic life mortalities. Real-time field observations can be viewed here. Contractors collected real-time water quality readings and water samples at 8 locations along Dockery, Mountain, Miles Creeks, and the Meherrin River.

Note: the real-time observations map has been updated to reflect lifting of the recreation and fish consumption advisory.

July 23
A DEQ team collected real-time water quality readings and water samples at 6 sites on Mountain, Dockery, and Miles Creeks, as well as the Roanoke River/Lake Gaston. Contractors collected real-time water quality readings and water samples at 8 locations along Dockery, Mountain, Miles Creeks, and the Meherrin River. Observations in Miles Creek, Mountain Creek, and the Roanoke River/Lake Gaston showed no foam, sheen, odor, or aquatic life mortalities, and real-time water quality readings were within normal ranges. Real-time field observations can be viewed here. Note: the interactive map has been updated to now include: the extent of the current recreation and fish consumption advisory, surface water sampling locations, and color coding of the water monitoring locations to indicate locations most recently monitored. Viewers can access a legend by toggling the legend icon in the top right corner of the map.

Updated surface water sampling results have been posted, and the results table has been reformatted to indicate where compounds were detected. The table can be accessed through the data tab or here.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ) Division of Water Resources began collecting water samples from the Roanoke River/Lake Gaston and the Meherrin River on Friday, July 12. Analytical results for NCDEQ’s sampling are available through their South Hill, Virginia, Warehouse Fire and Spill page. A link to the NCDEQ is also available under the resources section of this page.

As cleanup operations continue at the site of the former warehouse, the incident management team is focusing on data collection needs to support the Virginia Department of Health’s evaluation of the current recreation and fish consumption advisory as well as long-term sampling needs. 

July 22
DEQ and contractors collected real-time water quality readings at 6 sites on Mountain, Dockery, and Miles Creeks, as well as the Roanoke River/Lake Gaston. Real-time field observations can be viewed here. Contractors collected real-time water quality readings and water samples at 8 locations along Dockery, Mountain, Miles Creeks, and the Meherrin River. Observations in Miles Creek, Mountain Creek, and the Roanoke River/Lake Gaston showed no foam, sheen, odor, or aquatic life mortalities, and real-time water quality readings were within normal ranges. There were no observable impacts below the confluence of Dockery and Miles Creeks. Cleanup operations continue, and air monitoring continues at the cleanup site with no concerns noted.

July 21
DEQ and contractors collected real-time water quality readings at 6 sites on Mountain, Dockery, and Miles Creeks, as well as the Roanoke River/Lake Gaston. Real-time field observations can be viewed here. Observations in Miles Creek, Mountain Creek, and the Roanoke River/Lake Gaston showed no foam, sheen, odor, or aquatic life mortalities, and real-time water quality readings were within normal ranges. Slight water discoloration was observed at one location on Dockery Creek. Specific conductivity in Dockery Creek was slightly above and dissolved oxygen was slightly below normal ranges. The leading edge of potential contamination appears to remain at the confluence of Dockery and Miles Creeks approximately 2 miles upstream from Lake Gaston. Air monitoring continues at the cleanup site with no concerns noted.

July 20
DEQ and contractors collected real-time water quality measurements and physical observations from 7 locations along Mountain, Dockery, Little Miles, and Miles Creeks and the Roanoke River/Lake Gaston. Real-time field observations can be viewed here. Contractors continued cleanup at the former warehouse site and collected an additional 8 water samples. As of yesterday, the leading edge of contamination was near the confluence of Dockery and Miles Creeks approximately 2 miles upstream from Lake Gaston. Rain made it difficult to assess its movement today. Air monitoring continues at the cleanup site with no concerns noted.

July 19
EPA contactors collected real-time water quality measurements and physical observations from 9 locations along Mountain, Dockery and Miles Creeks and the Roanoke River/Lake Gaston. They collected six water samples from locations along the same water bodies. Real-time field observations can be viewed here. Today’s observations continue to indicate that the leading edge of contamination remains near the confluence of Dockery Creek and Miles Creek, approximately 2 miles upstream from Lake Gaston. Contractors continued cleanup operations at the former warehouse site and collected water samples from eight locations along Dockery, Miles and Mountain Creeks and the Meherrin River. Air monitoring continues at the cleanup site with no concerns noted. 

July 18, 2024
EPA contactors collected real-time water quality measurements and physical observations from 9 locations along Dockery and Miles Creeks, the Meherrin River, and the Roanoke River/Lake Gaston. They also collected water samples from three locations along the Meherrin River and three locations along Dockery/Miles Creek. Real-time field observations can be viewed here. Today’s observations continue to indicate that the leading edge of contamination remains near the confluence of Dockery Creek and Miles Creek, approximately 2 miles upstream from Lake Gaston. Contractors continued cleanup operations at the former warehouse site and collected water samples from eight locations along Dockery, Miles and Mountain Creeks and the Meherrin River. Air monitoring continues at the cleanup site with no concerns noted.

The Virginia Department of Health lifted the recreational and fish consumption advisories for a section of the Meherrin River that starts at Route 138 (Union Mill Road) flowing Southeast through the Town of Lawrenceville and the City of Emporia to the North Carolina state line. Advisories remain in place for Mountain Creek, Dockery Creek, and the Roanoke River/Lake Gaston to the North Carolina border.

The City of Emporia restarted their water treatment plant and resumed withdrawing water from the Meherrin River. Recent water sampling and consultation with Virginia Department of Health’s Office of Drinking Water confirmed that Emporia’s water supply was safe for consumption.

July 17, 2024
DEQ collected real-time water quality measurements, physical observations and water samples from Dockery and Miles Creeks, the Meherrin River, and the Roanoke River/Lake Gaston. DEQ's field observations can be viewed here. Observations continue to indicate that the leading edge of contamination is near the confluence of Dockery Creek and Miles Creek, approximately 2 miles upstream from Lake Gaston. NC DEQ reported sampling four locations in Lake Gaston including one location on the Virginia side of Lake Gaston. NC will share results with Virginia. EPA contactors arrived onsite to support on-going sampling efforts. Contractors continued cleanup operations at the former warehouse site and collected water samples from eight locations along Dockery, Miles and Mountain Creeks and the Meherrin River. 

July 16, 2024
DEQ collected real-time water quality measurements, physical observations and water samples from Dockery and Miles Creeks, the Meherrin River, and the Roanoke River/Lake Gaston. DEQ's field observations can be viewed here. The leading edge of contamination appears to be near the confluence of Dockery Creek and Miles Creek, approximately 2 miles upstream from Lake Gaston. Contractors continued cleanup operations at the former warehouse site and collected water samples from ten locations along Dockery, Miles and Mountain Creeks and the Meherrin River. Air monitoring continues at the site with no concerns noted.

July 15, 2024
Cleanup continued at the former site of the warehouse. DEQ staff completed observations at six sites: three on the Meherrin River and three along Dockery/Miles Creek. Observations indicate that the leading edge of runoff remains in Dockery and Miles Creeks. DEQ's observations can be viewed here. Contractors collected water samples from ten locations along Dockery, Miles and Mountain Creeks and the Meherrin River. Contractors continued air monitoring near the site with no concerns noted.

July 14, 2024 
DEQ staff inspected three locations along the Meherrin River and three locations along Dockery Creek and one location along Miles Creek. Staff observed no aquatic life impacts or unusual conditions at the Meherrin River locations. Observations in the Dockery Creek and Mile Creek watersheds indicated that the leading edge of impacts from the firefighting runoff is located in Dockery Creek just upstream of the confluence of Dockery Creek with Miles Creek. This location is over two miles from the confluence of Miles Creek with Lake Gaston. DEQ water monitoring observations can be viewed here.

July 13, 2024
Contractors continued to clean up the site. DEQ continued to monitor potentially affected waterbodies. Air monitoring continues. Contractors collected water samples.

July 12, 2024
Field activities were limited due to heavy rain and lightning. DEQ continued to survey affected waterways. Live fish were observed in some locations where dead fish were previously observed. Contractors collected and stored runoff from the former warehouse site. One drinking water well within a mile of the incident site was identified and deemed not at risk. 

July 11, 2024
The Virginia Department of Health extended the recreational water and fish consumption advisories to the North Carolina state line on the Meherrin and Roanoke rivers. Out of an abundance of caution, the City of Emporia ceased drawing water from the Meherrin River and began obtaining water from the Greensville County Water and Sewer Authority who draws water from the Nottoway River. The Nottoway River is not affected by this incident.

In anticipation of heavy rain, contractors took additional measures to contain and capture runoff from the former warehouse site. DEQ continued to survey affected waterways. Contractors continued to collect water samples.

July 10, 2024
DEQ staff continued to survey affected waterways. DEQ and contractors collected water samples. Contractors continued to collect and store runoff. Contractors continued cleanup operations. Contractors prepared runoff containment measures ahead of forecast rains. 

July 9, 2024
A recreational water advisory and a fish consumption advisory were established for Dockery and Mountain Creeks. DEQ staff continued to inspect water ways. DEQ and contractors collected water samples.  Contractors continued to collect and store runoff. Contractors continued cleanup operations.

July 8, 2024
Air monitoring continued. DEQ continued to inspect nearby waterways. Water samples were collected from Mountain Creek and Dockery Creek. Contractors continued to collect and store runoff. Contractors began cleanup operations.

July 7, 2024
Several flareups required the fire department to return and extinguish small fires. Contractors began collecting runoff from the site and storing it in temporary tanks. The fire was fully extinguished at approximately 1 p.m. Contractors set up air monitoring equipment at locations surrounding the site. Samples of the contaminated runoff were collected and submitted for laboratory analysis. DEQ began assessing impacts to nearby streams and tracking downstream movement of the firefighting water runoff. Dead fish and aquatic insects were observed. South Hill’s voluntary evacuation notice expired.

July 6, 2024
At approximately 2 p.m., a passenger vehicle crashed into a utility pole and two 125-gallon propane tanks located on the sidewalk in front of a warehouse used to store agricultural chemicals in South Hill. One of the tanks caught fire, which spread to the warehouse. Out of an abundance of caution, South Hill issued a voluntary one-half mile evacuation notice because of the unknown hazards associated with the fire. South Hill also opened a shelter for evacuees. The large volume of water used to fight the fire resulted in runoff containing agricultural chemicals. This runoff flowed into storm water drains and into nearby Mountain Creek, which flows into the Meherrin River. The fire was first declared as contained at 8 p.m.